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 Programme research should be thorough. Facts, dates and titles need to be checked and crosschecked. Information in one report may be wrong or out-of-date. Getting the facts right in Colombia's nightclub explosion - Catalina Esparza, correspondent in Colombia, Spanish Americas section It was the fourth explosion I had heard since my arrival in Colombia in July 2002. On the night of 7 February, I watched one of the most exclusive clubs in Bogota, the Colombian capital, burn and collapse before my very eyes. The horror of the oldest internal war in the Americas recorded yet another line in its history. Establishing the facts As time elapsed, more and more questions were asked: How could they be sure it was the FARC (the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) - as reported by "official sources" - given that it is practically impossible to get information from this illegal organisation? How did they establish the number of dead? An hour after the fire, it was stated that one person had died; other sources insisted it was seven, or even nine. Being some of the first to arrive at the scene (our office is just a few metres from the club), the main question was what to do first? Help the wounded who had managed to escape the building or wait for help to arrive? The importance of accuracy During a war or a disaster, our chances of reporting accurate information and "behaving in a befitting manner" are greatly reduced, but when it comes to people's dignity and pain, accuracy is imperative. In situations like this we have to report on what we see and what we are able to confirm. We must follow guidelines and never give speculation as fact. Our contribution in that tragedy, beyond saving lives and helping the wounded, was to ensure that any information released was accurate, in spite of the hardship and any moral questioning. |
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